NEC blasts prophets of doom.

The National Electoral Commission (NEC) Chairman, Judge (retired) Damian Lubuva has warned politicians to stop misleading the public that there are plans to postpone the October general elections, saying the ongoing voters’ registration will be complete by July this year.

 

Speaking at a press conference in Dar es Salaam yesterday, he said with the importation of more biometric voter registration (BVR) kits he was confident that the exercise will proceed smoothly.

 

He allayed fears of any more delays in the process, saying some of the challenges encountered in the Njombe pilot project that ends today have been sorted out. 

 

The retired judge noted that it took the commission almost two months to complete the exercise in Njombe due to small number of BVR kits.

 

At the start of the exercise, he said there were only 250 kits but the government bought some 248 kits and 1,600 more were scheduled to arrive in the country from Dubai through a chartered plane.

 

The new kits will speed up the exercise in the second phase of registration in Iringa, Lindi, Ruvuma and Mtwara regions. The exercise will commence on 24th April this year.

 

On the same date, some 1,600 kits will arrive in the country and will be used in Dodoma, Mbeya, Katavi and Rukwa regions in an exercise that will be launched in 2nd May, this year. Thereafter some 1,152 more kits to be used in Singida, Tabora, Kigoma and Kagera regions at a date to be announced later will be imported.

 

He added that the plan is to ensure the remaining kits are brought into the country as soon as possible and distributed to the respective municipal councils where they will be circulated four times.

 

“ It was our plan that we got all the kits at once, the registration process could take only 28 days in all the regions where the kits have been distributed,” he said.

 

As of now, he said registration will go on simultaneously in at least four regions as per the schedule, thus increasing the pace of the exercise.

 

It was on this ground that the retired judge sent strong message to all politicians to stop confusing the public, noting that their utterances can stop some of their followers from taking part in the registration exercise.

 

“Sometimes I wonder whether we need a speed governor or any other way to control politicians when they speak to the public because what they say can cause a lot of arm” he said.

 

He said those who say that there were plans to postpone the next general elections were completely wrong, adding that Tanzania cannot take such a dictatorial path.

 

The retired judge said section 5 of the constitution stipulates that the life of parliament will always be five years after which the country has to go to another general election and no president has thought of changing that.

 

“I am shocked to hear politicians saying that there are plans to extend life of the fourth parliament!” he noted.

 

His remarks comes in just a day after the Chama cha Demokrasia na Maendeleo (CHADEMA) chairman, Freeman Mbowe alleged that there were plans to postpone the coming elections.

 

He warned that such a plan would cause problems in the country but insisted that the slow pace of BVR registration was the evidence that NEC would take such decision.